Basics

Unreal Tournament III Basics

The classic staple of online first-person shooters since the very beginning. Deathmatch hasn't changed much over the years, and Unreal Tournament III isn't going to rock the boat. This is not a tactical game, and survival will take skill and reflexes.

The basic Deathmatch mode is a free-for-all where the man with the highest frag count wins. As such, defense is not as important as in Duels and TDM. You don't want to be giving up easy points to your opponent, but with so many people vying for dominance, you really only need to be especially concerned with those leading you at any given moment.

Team Deathmatch

Team Deathmatch, another old genre staple, is a race for dominance between two sides. With only two scores, it can often be a tight race for the two sides, and defensive playing becomes a much more important skill. Every time an enemy frags you, it's one more point they'll have. Because of this it really helps to know when to retreat and fall back into an area that your team has better control over.

Working together is essential to success. You'll want to establish a base of control and, when you have the momentum, expand outward. Striking out on your own for too much of the match is risky and counterproductive. Remember, that if you can pick off an enemy who was about to kill one of your teammates, you've not only scored a point, but blocked an enemy point as well, and thus done twice as much good.

Duels

Dueling is a specialized Deathmatch mode for two players. Best suited to small maps, Duels can be an interesting test of a variety of skills. As in Team Deathmatch, Duels have only two sides, so giving up points is highly undesirable. However, since it's also a race for frags with only one opponent, you'll need to be aggressive, as well. Learning to maintain this aggression when you have the momentum, and how to retreat, heal, and escape from unfavorable engagements will also help you tremendously.

One thing is certain; Dueling against a skilled player will make a man out of you. The skills you build in these fights will help you in all the other modes. The advantage of only having to fight a single opponent will give you a great opportunity to observe and dissect how the game is played, too.

Capture the Flag

Capture the Flag is probably the oldest objective-based mode in the genre. CTF features large, symmetrical maps for two teams. Each team will have a flag, and a point is scored when one team captures their opponents' flag and returns it to their own flag.

This dynamic means your team will need some kind of organization to be successful, with a clearly defined offense and defense. The offense will concentrate on getting the flag and returning to base, and the defense will guard their team's own flag.

Offensive players will have an easy time approaching the flag, and this can be aided by the Translocator, a teleportation device that can help you cross the cluttered midfield. Breaking the enemy defense can be difficult, which is why runners should not travel alone. The hardest part will be escaping. Offensive players should work hard to protect the player in possession of the flag. Unlike other modes, it is most beneficial to avoid combat when playing offense. Those who want to concentrate of kills will have more fun on defense.

Vehicle Capture the Flag

An interesting twist on the old formula, this is much like regular CTF, but played on large maps, with abundant vehicles. The same rules and progression applies, with points scored by bringing the enemy flag to your flag, but there are a few key differences.

There is no Translocator in VCTF, and flag runners can only use the Hoverboard, a light vehicle with no protection. They can however, grab on to other vehicles while on the board. This means you will want to have a flag runner, and a flag-runner runner to escort him to safety. Make sure you plan ahead for this and bring your fastest vehicle along for the ride.

Warfare

This is another objective-based mode, and is a continuation of the popular Onslaught mode from Unreal Tournament 2004. In this mode, there are series of "nodes" at various points on the map that connect to each other. You can capture a node only if it connects to a node you have already captured. To do so, simply touch the area on foot. When you have connected to the enemy's core successfully, it will become vulnerable. Its destruction will award your team the victory.

Building nodes takes some time. You can speed things up using the Link Gun's alt-fire. This process will slow down as the node nears full power, so it may not be worthwhile to continue to baby-sit it after the early stages. This is valuable time that can be spent traveling to the next node, which should be ready by the time you reach it if you spend a few seconds assisting the build.

To capture a node already in enemy control you will need to attack it and destroy it first. There is an item called the Nodebuster that can be used to instantly capture any node, even one already under enemy control, but it cannot be carried in a vehicle, so using it is risky. If the enemy drops a Nodebuster you can press the use key to destroy it and set them back.